Airline Etiquette: What to Do?

May 17, 2013— -- Some travelers are models of good behavior: regulation-size bag tucked easily into the overhead bins. Volume on their device of choice audible only to them on their headphones. No use of the middle armrest. Food brought on the plane is odorless or even has a pleasant scent, like an apple. And never, ever, do they utter more than a polite hello when they take the seat next to you.

And then, of course, there're the Worst Airline Passengers, Ever. They drink too much, force emergency landings. They hurl racist remarks at small children, that kind of thing.

And then there's everyone else who falls somewhere in the middle, and that's where things get a little dicey.

For example, who does get the middle armrests anyway? Should you say something to a fellow passenger who ignores crew instructions? What do you say to people who recline their seats into your lap?

An online, unscientific survey from Travel Leaders Group poses these questions and a few more. Here's what your fellow air travelers had to say:

When asked, "If you are seated in the middle seat on an airplane and the people on either side of you staked out the armrests, what would you do?" the responses were:

Say something directly to your seatmates. 27.9%

Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 2.6%

Sit quietly and say nothing. 48.9%

Not sure. 20.6%

When asked, "If the person in the airline seat in front of you invaded your personal space with an article of clothing and/or their hair so it was directly in front of you, what would you do?" the responses were:

Say something directly to the person. 68.9%

Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 9.3%

Sit quietly and say nothing. 13.0%

Not sure. 8.8%

When asked, "If the person in the airline seat in front of you reclined their seat so much that you were unable to lower you tray table or perhaps unable to open up a laptop, what would you do?" the responses were:

Say something directly to the person. 55.4%

Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 21.8%

Sit quietly and say nothing. 15.1%

Not sure. 7.7%

When asked, "If the person in the airline seat in front of you ignored crew member instructions to have their seat back upright for takeoff and/or landing, what would you do?" the responses were:

Say something directly to the person. 13.4%

Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 28.1%

Sit quietly and say nothing. 50.1%

Not sure. 8.4%

When asked, "If you were on a flight next to a person who insisted on trying to talk to you the entire flight, what would you do?" the responses were:

Use a book or other reading materials to try to limit the conversation. 38.1%

Put on headphones and use a book or other reading materials to limit conversation. 18.9%

Engage them in conversation for the whole flight. 12.2%

Specifically let that person know that you would prefer not to talk. 10.4%

Put on headphones to try to limit the conversation. 8.7%

Pretend to sleep to try to limit the conversation. 7.4%

Put on headphones and pretend to sleep. 4.3%

When asked, "If you were on a flight with someone who talked so loudly that half the plane could hear them, what would you do?" the responses were:

Say something directly to the person. 14.4%

Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 27.9%

Sit quietly and say nothing. 36.0%

Not sure. 21.7%

When asked, "What would you do if it appeared parents of a screaming child aboard a plane were not making any attempt to comfort/control their child?" the responses were:

Say something directly to the person. 7.9%

Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 46.7%

Sit quietly and say nothing. 30.6%

Not sure. 14.8%